Then Jesus said, "Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light." (Mathew 11:28-30 NLT)
Today, I don’t have a four-step strategy to help you gain confidence or take bold steps of faith. Let’s be honest—some days, those things feel uplifting and inspiring. Other days, they can seem overwhelming, even impossible. While spiritual discipline and consistency are essential to our spiritual growth, there are times when we need a reminder of the hope we have in Jesus—the One who made a way through every impossibility.
When overwhelm begins to creep in, and life’s circumstances threaten to overtake us, it's crucial to have a default of turning to our Heavenly Father before we spiral.
Jesus said, “Come to Me, all you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28). Jesus calls us to come as we are—to rest in Him. He also calls us to enter the Kingdom with child-like faith (Matthew 18:3). When I am weary, overwhelmed, and longing for reassurance, I picture myself as a child crawling into the lap of my Heavenly Father. He embraces me as a loving father comforts his child. In His arms, I find safety, peace, and hope. There, I share my worries, or sometimes I simply whisper, “I need You.” And without fail, He provides comfort.
There are moments when He gently wipes away my tears, gazing into my eyes with the deepest compassion, His own tears streaming down, reminding me of His immense love for me. Other times, He speaks wisdom into the situation I am facing. He co-regulates with me, just as a parent does with their young child, patiently allowing space for every emotion I am feeling until they subside—when my mind races with anxiety and fear, He steps in, saying, “My child, I am here.” This is my sacred place of intimacy with the Father—a place where He reassures me of who He is, even in the midst of my struggles.
I often wonder if this is how David approached God in his darkest moments—seeking rest in the arms of the Father, finding safety from the storm, and marvelling at the greatness of the Creator, who holds the whole world in His hands. The intimacy David shared with God is beautifully expressed in the Psalms he wrote, pouring out a full range of emotions, yet always returning to the unshakable truth of God's faithful love and unwavering character.
I’m not naïve enough to think that everyone has had the blessing of a loving earthly father to be able to relate to what a loving Heavenly Father would be like. If you have not had that experience, I invite you today to ask the Father to show you His unconditional love for you. His love is so much greater than any love we could experience here on earth.
Do you need to find comfort in the Father’s arms today? Take a moment to picture yourself as a child, crawling into His safe, loving embrace. Release every burden. Let go of the need to control, and trust that you don’t have to figure it all out. The Father’s love is the rest you long for. His yoke is easy, and His burden is light (Mattew 11:30).
**Note: I wrote this not knowing what I would do with it. I wasn’t happy with the first draft and honestly still struggle with knowing how much to share of my walk and intimacy with the Lord for fear of judgment. Sometimes it feels like I wear my heart on my sleeve and then the exposure feels overwhelming. So, I left the piece, not sure what to do with it.
Days later, I was co-leading a small group and one of the leaders began speaking of how sometimes we need to crawl into the Father’s lap to find rest, as she was holding a young toddler in her arms who seemed so content to rest there. The Lord confirms things to us in many ways when we are open and willing to receive His loving nudge to listen and obey.
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